Features
Maximising business opportunities available under the AfCFTA
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Five villages, namely, Menpeasem, Abuburo, Bankyeasa, Suronipa, and Nkwaepa previously existed as independent towns not having anything to do with one another during which time they encountered difficulties in their socio-economic development. The difficulties they encountered taught them one lesson, that is, the need to come together and cooperate in a way that will help them to pursue their common agenda of economic development. African countries have been struggling over the years to find a lasting solution to the problem of coming together in a form of unity to promote their continental interest, having failed in a way to successfully set up Organisation of African Unity (OAU) which has now become the African Union (AU). Despite this, not much has been achieved by way of continental economic development for which reason African countries have found the need to set up the largest trading bloc in the world. This bloc, if successful, will be to the benefit of African countries since it will promote huge volumes of trade among the countries on the continent.
BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY
In other words, one great business opportunity provided under the African Continental Free Trade Area is the platform provided for all businessmen and women on the continent to take advantage of the situation and transact business with their counterparts from other parts of the continent. The potential benefits of the bloc have been belaboured time and again and what is left now is to put it into full practice for the entire benefit of Africa. This business opportunity has come at a time when African countries are expected to transact business among their own selves and thereby maximise benefits that can accrue from business transactions with one another. In terms of resources, Africa is a rich continent but in terms of exploitation of these resources for the benefit of its people, the continent is found to be lagging behind the rest of the world. With the formation of the continental free trade, Africa stands a chance of encouraging its business entities to rise to the occasion and maximise benefits from within Africa through intra African trade rather than through business transactions with other parts of the world even though such business transactions are also important.
TRADING WITH OTHER COUNTRIES
Trading with countries outside Africa is good but the point being made is that the continent of Africa provides a huge opportunity for countries on the continent to align themselves with one another and promote trade among themselves. If this is done economic growth will take place within the continent and thereby help in the promotion of economic growth for all Africans. This is one fact that cannot be run away from, and all African countries must remain committed to this truth. Such commitment to intra African trade is what is needed by all countries in the continent to generate internally induced economic growth. It is this growth that is needed to improve upon the welfare of people on the continent and to make life better than it is today for all Africans. However, to be able to generate internally generated growth and make life better for people on the continent, African businessmen and women ought to keep to the use of applicable standards. It is the use of such relevant applicable standards that will help business entities on the continent to take advantage of the continental free trade.
STANDARDS AND SPECIFICATIONS
Applicable standards are meant to ensure uniformity of standards and specification so that the characteristics of imported products to any African country will be the same irrespective of where it is imported from. This will make all forms of products fit- for- purpose and ensure fairness in trade as well as promotion of large volumes of trade on the continent. A standard serves as a guide for businesses to do what is right and avoid unacceptable practices.
Such guiding principles and practices as approved by national standards bodies kept in form of a document, in form of rules, guidelines or characteristics for products and their related processes or production methods. Compliance with relevant standards implies that for whatever is produced for a market, be it local or international, the applicable standards will have to be obtained and applied to the products or processes concerned. What this means is that any business entity that wants to produce soap, textiles, footwear and food items ought to look for the relevant standards and apply them in their production process. Companies that have been able to do this supply goods not only to local markets, but also foreign or international markets. The time has, therefore, come for business entities in the country not to go about production in the same old ways of doing things but explore new areas in the application of standards to make them more competitive in the local and international markets.
FIGHTING FOR TRADE SECRETARIAT
The President of the Republic of Ghana, H.E Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has done everything he can to ensure that the Continental Free Trade Secretariat is set up in the country. This will come with several benefits to the nation, but more benefits can be derived, if business entities in Ghana here explore greater opportunities in terms of applying relevant standards so as to make themselves highly competitive in local and international markets on any part of the continent in order to bring in the needed revenue for economic growth. Even though the African trade bloc is important to the continent, we can only make adequate use of it if we focus on applicable standards in whatever is produced or manufactured for neighbouring countries. Without this there will be disagreements and trade dispute among the countries on the continent.
AVOIDING TRADE DISPUTES
Trading blocs in various parts of the world that are functioning well and promoting the interest of their bloc members often encounter disputes with one another or among themselves even when standards are being adhered to. If these standards are not adhered to by members of any trading bloc, the result will be a tremendous rise in trade related issues. This explains why African countries must pay attention to applicable standards and ensure that there is uniformity of purpose as far as trade with one another is concerned. Seen in this light, it will not be automatic for Ghanaians to just export their products to any parts of the African market but to ensure that all outputs conform to relevant standards, processes and systems to ensure quality as well as safety, good health and protection of the environment for consumers of these products. This is achievable, so all Ghanaian business entities as well as others operating in the country must make themselves relevant through application of standards and systems in line with best international practices.
“A woman who abandons her baby in a dustbin at Kasoa Lorry Station is not always a wicked woman. Sometimes, she is a wounded woman whose mind has broken, whose family has rejected her, and whose society has left her with only one terrible option: disappear or be disgraced.”
That is the hard truth Ghana must hear.
In the last 10 days alone, our nation has been confronted with the same painful headline, twice.
Case 1 – Kasoa Main Lorry Station, Central Region: A newborn baby girl was found abandoned inside a dustbin at the public toilet of the Kasoa Main Station. A woman who went to use the facility discovered the infant and raised an alarm. Commercial drivers and bystanders quickly retrieved the baby and rushed her to the Kasoa Polyclinic for emergency medical care.
Case 2 – Asante Bekwai, Ashanti Region: On Thursday morning, August 20, 2026, a two-week-old neonate was reportedly abandoned by an unknown nursing mother at Bekwai in the Ashanti Region. Residents who came across the child raised the alarm. The baby was admitted to the Bekwai Government Hospital as police commenced investigations.
Let me be clear from the start: Newborn abandonment is wrong. It is dangerous. It is criminal. And it can kill. This article does not excuse it. But if we only arrest and shame, we will never stop it. We must treat the root, not just punish the fruit.
What exactly is newborn abandonment? – The two definitions
The Legal Definition: Under Ghana’s Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29), Section 96, and the Children’s Act, 1998 (Act 560), abandonment of a child under 12 years is a criminal offence. It is classified as exposure and abandonment, punishable as a misdemeanor or felony. The law sees the mother as a perpetrator.
The Psychological definition: In clinical textbooks, newborn abandonment is defined as the intentional, permanent relinquishment of all parental rights, care, and responsibilities over an infant within the first 28 days of life without making formal, legal arrangements for care.
To understand this crisis properly, we must not confuse it with child abandonment. Newborn abandonment happens within 0-28 days of life, often driven by acute panic, denial of pregnancy, or postpartum psychosis where the attachment bond never formed. Child abandonment, on the other hand, involves toddlers to teenagers where a bond existed but collapsed over time due to chronic poverty, family breakdown, or parental burnout. One is an acute crisis of the first month; the other is a chronic breakdown over years. Both are harmful, but they need different interventions.
Psychologically, newborn abandonment is the ultimate rupture of the primary attachment bond. Think of a 19-year-old university student who secretly gives birth alone in her hostel room, wraps the crying baby in a polythene bag, and drops it at a refuse dump at midnight. That is not just a crime scene; it is a scene of extreme panic and psychological dissociation.
Why would a mother carry a baby for 9 months and then abandon it?
This is the question every Ghanaian asks. If you wanted to abandon it, why not abort? The answer is deeply psychological:
1. The psychodynamics of denial of pregnancy: This is a profound defense mechanism, not a lie. The mother’s subconscious mind completely rejects the reality of the pregnancy. She does not gain weight normally, feels no kicks, does not seek antenatal care, and genuinely convinces herself she is not pregnant until sudden, shocking labour pains take her by surprise in a toilet or bedroom.
2. Fantasy of a dissolving problem: This is called cognitive avoidance. She believes “my boyfriend will come back,” “my mother will forgive me,” or “something miraculous will happen before birth.” So she waits, paralyzed, until the baby is here.
3. Barriers to safe abortion: Deep religious guilt, moral anxiety, fear of dying from a back-alley abortion, lack of money for a safe procedure, and family laws force her to carry to term even when she feels incapable.
4. The shock of reality and acute panic: Upon delivery, the physical presence and crying of the newborn shatters all denial. Confronted with immediate exposure, shame, and reality, her brain enters a trauma response — “fight, flight, or freeze.” For many, it becomes “flight” — physically escape the threat of exposure to survive socially. That is why babies are left in places where others will find them -lorry stations, churches, hospitals.
Source:
Counselor Prince Offei, CPAC’s founder, is a leading Mental Health Professional, Marriage Counsellor, Author, ADR Expert/Arbitrator, and Spectator Newspaper Columnist. He writes on relationships, marriage, parenting, special needs support, and their connection to mental health. For therapy, counselling, or enquiries, contact Counselor Prince & Associates Consult (CPAC) in Accra on 0559850604 / 0551428486.
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Features
Environmental stewardship is an act of worship: The Islamic response to climate change, environmental degradation (Part 4)
The environmental consequences of illegal mining have reached alarming levels in Ghana. Several major rivers, including the Pra, Ankobra, Offin, Birim and Tano, have experienced significant pollution from illegal mining activities, increasing the cost and complexity of water treatment while threatening the availability of potable water for millions of citizens (Water Resources Commission, 2024; Ghana Water Limited, 2024). These developments underscore the urgent need for stronger environmental governance and collective action.
Islam equally emphasises accountability in governance. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) taught that every leader is responsible for those under his or her authority (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 7138; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 1829). This principle extends to public officials entrusted with environmental regulation, traditional authorities responsible for communal lands, mining companies, local assemblies, and community leaders. Environmental protection cannot succeed
where accountability is absent.
At the same time, addressing galamsey requires more than law enforcement. Sustainable solutions must tackle the underlying socio-economic realities that drive individuals into illegal mining. Many young people are motivated by unemployment, poverty, and limited economic opportunities. Islamic principles of social justice therefore call for the creation of alternative livelihoods through sustainable agriculture, vocational training, responsible small-scale mining under strict environmental standards, entrepreneurship, and skills development. Environmental protection and economic empowerment should not be viewed as competing priorities but as complementary goals that promote human dignity and national development.
Faith communities also have an indispensable role to play. Mosques, churches, schools, traditional councils, and civil society organisations possess significant influence in shaping public attitudes and behaviours. Imams, in particular, should consistently remind congregations that wealth acquired through actions that destroy communities and Allah’s creation cannot be regarded as a blessing. Religious education should cultivate environmental ethics alongside spiritual devotion, reinforcing the understanding that protecting rivers, forests, and farmlands is an expression of gratitude to Allah and a fulfilment of the trust of Khalifah.
Ultimately, the struggle against galamsey is more than a campaign to protect natural resources; it is a struggle to uphold justice, preserve human dignity, and honour the trust that Allah has placed upon humanity. Lasting solutions will require strong governance, responsible citizenship, sustainable economic opportunities, and renewed moral leadership. Only when these elements
work together can Ghana safeguard its natural heritage for present and future generations.
Water conservation, waste management and sustainable development: Practical expressions of Islamic stewardship
Religious education should cultivate environmental ethics alongside spiritual devotion, reinforcing the understanding that protecting rivers, forests, and farmlands is an expression of gratitude to Allah and a fulfilment of the trust of Khalifah.
Ultimately, the struggle against galamsey is more than a campaign to protect natural resources; it is a struggle to uphold justice, preserve human dignity, and honour the trust that Allah has placed upon humanity. Lasting solutions will require strong governance, responsible citizenship, sustainable economic opportunities, and renewed moral leadership. Only when these elements
work together can Ghana safeguard its natural heritage for present and future generations.
Islam is not merely a religion that condemns environmental destruction; it also provides practical guidance for preserving and sustaining the natural world. Through its teachings on moderation, cleanliness, conservation, and responsible consumption, Islam cultivates an environmental ethic that remains remarkably relevant to contemporary challenges such as water scarcity, pollution, waste management, and climate change. These teachings encourage Muslims to become
responsible custodians of Allah’s creation in both private and public life.
Water conservation: A sacred responsibility
Water occupies a unique position in Islam as the source of life and an essential element of worship. Allah says, “And We made from water every living thing. Then will they not believe?” (Qur’an 21:30, Sahih International). This verse reminds believers that water is not merely an economic resource but a divine blessing upon which all living creatures depend. The importance of water is further reflected in Islamic acts of worship. Muslims perform ablution (wudu) before the five daily prayers and ritual bathing (ghusl) under prescribed circumstances.
Yet, despite its central role in purification, Islam strongly discourages wastefulness. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) once advised one of his companions not to waste water while performing ablution, even when using water from a flowing river (Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 425). This timeless guidance establishes the principle that abundance does not justify extravagance.
Conservation remains a religious obligation regardless of the apparent availability of natural resources.
This Prophetic teaching carries profound implications for contemporary Ghana. Illegal mining has severely polluted many rivers, increasing the cost of water treatment and limiting access to safe drinking water for numerous communities. Climate change has also intensified seasonal variability in rainfall, placing additional pressure on freshwater resources (IPCC, 2023). Against this
backdrop, conserving water is no longer simply an environmental preference—it is a moral imperative grounded in Islamic teaching.
Water conservation should therefore become a shared responsibility among households, educational institutions, industries, and places of worship. Simple practices such as repairing leaking pipes, harvesting rainwater, protecting riverbanks, avoiding contamination of water bodies, and promoting efficient irrigation contribute to safeguarding one of Allah’s greatest blessings. Every effort to preserve water is an investment in public health, food security, and the
wellbeing of future generations.
Unfortunately, indiscriminate disposal of refuse remains a significant challenge in many communities. Plastic waste clogs drainage systems, contributes to flooding during the rainy season, pollutes rivers and beaches, and threatens marine ecosystems. Open burning of waste further degrades air quality and poses serious health risks, particularly for children and the elderly (UNEP,2024).
The author is Chief Imam of Katamanso Municipal and Certified Counsellor and Governnace Expert.
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